


Named in a Fairytale

by TheNutcase



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Humor, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:34:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27051259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNutcase/pseuds/TheNutcase
Summary: "Uh-uh, hold up. Pause," Lizzie snaps, rudely pointing a finger right in Hope's face. “What did you just call my sister?”Hope freezes, her face paling like she's seen a ghost.This reaction seems to be all the more damning in Lizzie's eyes. “PRINCESS?!” she practically screeches, her eyes wild.Or,Hope develops a habit of calling Josie "Princess", which is all well and good until she accidentally lets it slip in front of people.
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 25
Kudos: 668
Collections: its hosie





	Named in a Fairytale

The first time Hope says it, Josie’s a bit distracted.

Josie’s distracted because she’s in a crisis. She’s been kidnapped, and she’s alone, tied to a chair in some weird room that looks a lot like a dungeon.

It looks exactly like a dungeon, actually, but she’s trying not to think about it.

All she can think about is how stupid it was of her to store away her magic.

She keeps picturing the coin and where it’s hidden. She keeps promising herself that if she makes it out of this alive she’ll never do something so idiotic again.

But she’s almost entirely certain that she _won't_ make it out of this alive—that she’s about to die at any moment, or at least suffer horribly.

Well, she’s certain of that until Hope shows up in a flash, kneeling down beside Josie and pulling the gag out of her mouth before she can think.

Josie freezes, shocked by the way Hope has suddenly appeared out of thin air. She gulps as soon as she’s free to speak. “Hope, what are you doing here?” she whispers, her eyes frantically darting around the room to make sure they hadn’t been caught.

Hope raises an eyebrow, already working hard to undo the knots keeping Josie bound to the chair. “I’m here to save you, obviously,” she whispers back with a tiny bit of sass. She looks up from the ropes suddenly, her expression morphing into one filled with concern. “Are you okay? They didn’t hurt you or anything, right?”

“I’m fine,” Josie replies with a dismissive shake of her head. She gives Hope a stern look. “You shouldn’t have come. You’re going to get hurt.”

Hope instantly scoffs, rolling her eyes at the absurdity of the idea that she would  ever _not_ come. “You’re the one who got yourself kidnapped, princess,” she retorts, sending Josie a stern look of her own.

Josie falters.

Her heart weirdly feels like it’s about to explode for a moment, with Hope staring at her like that.

(With Hope _calling_ her  that .)

Hope doesn’t seem to notice that she’s just propelled Josie into a mini heart attack. She looks down, starting to untie Josie’s hands.

Josie just watches, wondering how someone can be so pretty and strong and smart at the same time—

“Let’s go,” Hope urges the moment the knots are undone, rising to her feet and offering her hand to help Josie stand up.

Hope doesn’t let go of Josie’s hand until they’re safely back at the school.

Lizzie pulls Josie into a bone-crushing hug the moment she sees her, and then she’s rambling on and on about how Josie is never allowed to store her magic away again.

Hope observes quietly. Josie makes eye contact with her over Lizzie’s shoulder. They exchange little secretive smiles, but then Hope backs out of the room to let them have some twin time.

Josie wishes she hadn’t left.

* * *

The second time Hope says it, Josie’s less distracted.

Or, well, she’s distracted by something other than being kidnapped, anyway. It’s always a little bit distracting for Josie, the way Hope’s lips curl around her words—the way her eyes sparkle, especially when she’s smiling.

It’s only a couple of days after Josie’s kidnapping and subsequent rescue. She’s coming back from a shower, wearing a robe and holding her shampoo, when she bumps into Hope. 

Hope just happens to be walking in the opposite direction. When Josie sees her coming, she halts in her tracks like she’s been shocked.

Hope looks up at her curiously—warily, even. Josie instantly realizes that she probably looks like a creep, standing still in the middle of the hall and staring at Hope without saying a word.

Josie blinks quickly and clears her throat to snap herself out of it. “Hope,” she blurts out, just to say something. 

She immediately feels stupid and tries to ignore the way her cheeks heat up.

Hope veers toward her. She comes a little bit too close for Josie to think straight. “Hey,” she greets. 

Hope smiles—genuinely smiles, in that uninhibited way that makes her eyes crinkle a bit at the edges.  It also happens to make Josie’s heart skip a beat.

“Hey,” Josie echoes, a little breathlessly, her own lips curling into a slightly more strained smile of her own.

Hope just keeps on smiling. She stares at Josie expectantly for a long moment, surprised when the siphoner doesn’t say anything else. 

After a moment, Hope clears her throat and decides to put Josie out of her awkward misery. “How are you feeling?” she asks, her voice packed with concern.

“I’m fine,” Josie dismisses with a little shrug. Her lips twist into something resembling a pout as she instinctively reflects Hope’s concern back at her. “How are you?”

Hope chuckles a little, like the question amuses her. Her eyes drift down to look at the pout on Josie’s lips. They linger there before she looks up again. “I’m good,” she answers simply.

Josie desperately tries to come up with something else to say. 

She’s almost relieved when she realizes that she hasn’t outright thanked Hope for saving her yet. “Thank you, by the way,” she says quietly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and nervously glancing down at her feet. “For saving me.”

Hope just shrugs. “Anytime,” she replies, as though her rescue mission were no big deal. She stares at Josie intensely for a long pause, like she’s debating over whether or not to say something else. 

Josie can’t really tell if Hope has decided to say it or not—but, suddenly, Hope’s smirking at her. “See you around, princess,” she murmurs, punctuating the sentence with a wink.

Josie blushes so hard that she worries for a moment that Hope might’ve just lit her on fire.

Hope doesn’t torment her by staring, though—she just gives Josie one more glance before walking around her and continuing toward wherever she’d been headed. 

(Fleetingly, Josie thinks that Hope looked almost  _ longing _ for a second there, but she convinces herself that there’s no way that could be right.)

* * *

The third time, Josie is in the kitchen.

She really shouldn’t be there—it’s way past curfew. It’s nearly one in the morning, actually, and Josie shouldn’t be awake at all. It’s a school night.

But Josie hasn’t been able to sleep much lately. She’s started to develop a habit of thinking too hard.

The walk down to the kitchen seems to help. She expends a little extra energy and makes herself tea. It’s enough to lure her to sleep on some nights.

Besides, no one is up to catch her in the act, anyway.

Usually.

“Josie?”

A voice suddenly sounds from behind her, and Josie’s fully convinced for a moment that she’s about to be attacked. She nearly throws her tea across the room.

Josie spins around with a hand over her heart, already relaxing before she takes in the image of Hope. She’d recognize Hope’s voice anywhere, after all—she just needed a moment to process it. “Hope,” Josie exhales. "You scared me."

Hope looks like she just came straight from the gym. She’s wearing her workout clothes and the gloves she wears when she spars. There's a few beads of sweat along her neck.

Josie forces herself to look away, realizing that her innocent observation might come across more like checking Hope out.

Hope doesn’t seem to notice, or at least she doesn’t mind. She comes closer, leaning against the counter. “What are you doing up so late?” she asks.

Josie shrugs, shyly glancing down at her tea like she’d been caught doing something wrong. She tries to remind herself that Hope shouldn’t be here, either. “I don’t know, I couldn’t sleep,” she admits in a mumble.

Hope frowns at Josie's evasive reply. She pushes herself off of the counter and takes a couple steps closer. “Is everything okay?” she prompts gently.

Josie blinks. Of course Hope would know that something’s wrong, she reminds herself—Hope can practically read her mind sometimes.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Josie lies with a dismissive shrug. She can’t bring herself to look Hope in the eye.

The corner of Hope’s lip quirks up into a dampened half-smile. She takes another step closer. “You always say you’re fine,” she observes quietly.

Josie’s eyes snap up to stare at Hope. She can tell that Hope isn’t trying to push her—that she just wants her to know that she’s there if Josie needs her. 

“It’s just…,” Josie trails off, her finger tapping nervously on the rim of her teacup. 

Hope nods to encourage her to continue, waiting patiently.

Josie puts the cup down on the counter so that she can properly cross her arms over her chest, staring down at her feet. She forces herself to open up with no small amount of reluctance. “I’m overwhelmed,” she admits.

Hope pouts. Josie glances up. She almost giggles, because it’s obvious that Hope isn’t pouting on purpose. 

“Why?” Hope asks. She takes another step closer.

Josie gulps, noticing how close they are.

She feels sort of cornered against the counter, but not in a bad way. Otherwise, she just feels a little ashamed of herself. 

It’s a feeling she’s getting used to. 

Josie shrugs, glancing away nervously. “Because of what I did,” she mumbles.

Hope’s face falls. She looks so sad all of a sudden that Josie regrets saying anything at all. Josie barely resists the urge to reach out and comfort her.

Hope steps closer again—and, yes, they’re even closer than they were in the hall now. There’s barely a couple inches of space left between them. Josie’s heart picks up speed. 

“Jo...,” Hope murmurs softly, trailing off. She gives Josie a meaningful look. “Everyone has done things they regret.”

Josie frowns, because  _ that’s _ an understatement. “I killed Alyssa,” she mutters, a bit of resentment coming through in her voice—but not at Hope (never at Hope), at herself.

Hope doesn’t like that at all. “Alyssa’s fine,” she protests.

Josie shakes her head. “It doesn’t matter that she came back,” she retorts. “I  _ killed _ someone, Hope.”

Hope pouts again—it’s unfair how cute it is. “So did MG,” she reminds Josie. She reaches out to grab Josie’s hand on instinct, intertwining their fingers. “And Jade. And a third of the student body.”

Josie looks away, because she knows that—she _does_ —but it’s not the same. 

Even if it were the same, Josie was supposed to be better. Josie was supposed to have things under control.

She stays quiet, not sure how to express what she’s thinking.

Hope is so close that Josie hears it when she gulps nervously— _ feels _ it when she hesitates. “And me.”

Josie freezes. She frowns, her eyes darting up to stare at Hope. She opens her mouth to protest. “Hope, that’s not the same—”

“People would be alive who aren’t alive if it hadn’t been for me,” Hope cut her off with a matter-of-fact shrug. “We’ve all made mistakes. You need to give yourself the same compassion that you give to everyone else.” 

Josie falls silent and just stares, because she’s a little speechless.

Hope stares back at her. Hope cares  _ so _ much—Josie can see it in her eyes. It makes Josie’s heart do a violent flip. 

It’s almost like Hope knows how she affects her. She gives Josie a little smile and gently squeezes her hand. She only pauses for a moment before she pulls Josie into a tight hug.

Josie lets out a soft sigh and the tension drains right out of her body. She wraps her arms around Hope’s shoulders and buries her face into Hope’s neck, her eyes drooping closed. 

She almost feels like she could fall asleep right on the spot.

Josie absentmindedly wonders why they don’t do this more often, because she feels  _ safe _ for once , and that’s a rare luxury in her life. 

Hope rubs gentle circles into her back. She’s just tall enough to rest her chin on Josie’s shoulder if she stands on her tippy-toes. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, princess.” 

Hope whispers the pet name this time, and it’s the third time she’s used it—Josie may or may not be counting—but it’s  _ different _ this time. It’s softer, fonder—it’s almost  _ loving _ , and it nearly makes Josie melt into a (pansexual) puddle right on the spot.

Josie feels her heart twist sharply in her chest, and she starts to cry a little bit even though she doesn’t intend to. Hope must be able to tell somehow, because she squeezes Josie tighter and doesn’t let her go for a while.

* * *

It happens more often, after that.

They seem to have shared something intimate in the kitchen, and it causes a shift in their relationship that Josie doesn’t know how to name.

They start spending a lot more time alone together. 

Hope makes sure of it. She starts lingering. She’s very good at it. Josie starts to wonder if it’s a wolf thing, or a wolf-witch thing, or maybe just a Hope thing. 

Hope finds Josie in the library and sits with her until just about everyone else leaves. 

She finds Josie in between classes. 

She finds out where Josie spends her free time.

Some people might find it stalker-y, Josie figures, but Josie doesn’t mind. 

Because it starts gradually. Hope is timid and careful about it at first, like she’s just testing the waters. She pays close attention to Josie's reaction.

Josie can tell that Hope would probably scamper away with her tail between her legs if she received one signal that she was making Josie uncomfortable.

But it doesn’t make Josie uncomfortable. Josie doesn’t mind at all.

She likes it, actually. She likes the fact that Hope’s paying attention. She likes Hope’s company.

Hope doesn’t drain much of Josie’s energy, either. It’s more like spending alone time together than socializing. 

So, it develops into a routine.

They meet at the dock after class. 

Hope’s always there first, waiting. Her eyes light right up when Josie emerges through the trees. 

_ “Hey, princess.” _

Josie pulls out a book to read, and she lies down on the dock, resting her head in Hope’s lap. 

Hope stares into the woods to watch the birds (or maybe to keep guard—it's hard to tell). She absentmindedly plays with Josie’s hair.

Josie can usually only handle that for half an hour before she starts to fall asleep.

Hope always glances down with a smile while Josie fights to keep her eyes open. She gently pulls the book out of Josie’s hands, and that’s all it takes for Josie to give in.

Later, when it's starting to get dark, Hope nudges her awake. 

_ “Wake up, princess.” _

No matter how many times Hope says it, it never fails to make Josie’s heart flutter. She says it often enough for it to mean something, but not often enough for it to lose its power.

* * *

Alaric nods. "That sounds like a good—"

"No."

Josie has a plan to beat the new monster, but Hope doesn't like it at all.

Hope hates it, actually. She hates it so much that she's practically seething.

They're all crowded around the desk in Alaric's office to discuss it, and everyone else seems to be on board. 

But no one's oblivious to the tension radiating off of Hope. Even Jed is eying her warily.

Josie frowns. “Hope—”

“You’re not  _ bait _ , Josie,” Hope snaps, like there's no room for argument. “We’ll find another way.”

Everyone shifts awkwardly and averts eye contact, not entirely certain of how to respond.

Except for Josie. Josie's jaw ticks defiantly. She stands up from her chair, facing Hope head-on. “There’s no other way,” she states matter-of-factly. “We need to do this.”

“ _ No _ ,” Hope practically growls, her eyes flashing gold, an unmistakable warning.

Everyone freezes.

Josie seems unfazed, like she’s entirely certain that Hope wouldn’t hurt her—but, f or a moment, everyone else in the room looks a little uncertain. 

No one knows how to react. Everyone seems taken aback. They’re all staring at Hope like she has three heads.

Hope has everyone’s undivided attention, but she only seems to care about Josie’s.

(Lizzie is the only one whose attention is elsewhere. She rolls her eyes at Hope's dramatics, opening her water bottle and taking a sip.)

When Hope speaks, she addresses only Josie. It’s as if she’s forgotten that there are other people in the room. “I won’t let you get hurt, princess.”

Lizzie literally does a spit take. She projects water all over Alaric's desk, much to Alaric's dismay. 

For a moment there's chaos—Alaric launches to his feet, distressed at the state of his desk. 

MG is startled by the sudden movement, so he whips around to stare at the door like he thinks it's been caused by the entrance of a monster. Kaleb follows MG's motion, instinctively aiming his crossbow at the empty doorway.

Lizzie is dramatically hacking up a lung. Jed is staring at her, his eyes wide like he's uncertain about whether or not he should be doing the Heimlich maneuver.

As soon as everyone seems to get over their panic, they all turn to stare at Lizzie.

Lizzie gets a hold of herself, and then she's launching out of her chair. “Uh-uh, hold up. Pause,” she gasps out, her voice scratchy and strained. She rudely points a finger directly into Hope's face. “What did you just call my sister?”

Hope instantly freezes, her face paling like she's seen a ghost.

This reaction seems to be all the more damning in Lizzie's eyes. “ _ Princess?!” _ she practically screeches, her eyes wild.

Josie decides to step in, because Hope looks like she's about to pass out and Josie isn't entirely certain that Lizzie won't attack her. “It’s nothing,” Josie states firmly, taking a protective step in front of Hope. “Don’t make a big deal out of it, Lizzie.”

Lizzie scoffs dramatically, as if she's severely offended. “ _Nothing?”_ she echoes. She props her hands on her hips with a scolding glare. “It sounds like a  _ thing _ to me, Josie!”

  
Josie opens her mouth, but she snaps it shut again just as quickly. She honestly doesn't know what to say.  
  


Lizzie's eyes narrow, and they dart back and forth between Hope and Josie. “Have you two been seeing each other behind my back?” she asks, her voice quieter but very, very threatening.

Josie's eyes widen. Her mouth drops open at the accusation. She can hear Hope sputtering uselessly behind her, so she knows that Hope isn't faring any better.

Josie snaps her jaw shut and gulps, her face heating up rapidly. “What?!” she yelps. “Of course not!”

(Josie doesn’t sound very convincing. She’s honestly not convinced herself. For a moment, she's tempted to ask Lizzie to define  _ seeing each other,  _ but she has a feeling that it wouldn't go over so well.)

Absentmindedly, Josie wonders when her relationship with Hope got so complicated.

Hope is unusually quiet. Josie takes a step back again and glances at her to make sure she's okay. 

She's fighting off a very, very heavy blush, and she can't seem to make eye contact with anyone.

Unfortunately, Lizzie takes Josie's instinct to look at Hope the wrong way. She gasps dramatically. “Oh, my God!” she practically yells. “You totally  _ are! ” _

Hope shakes her head, but she's still struggling to look at anyone, and she's still blushing harder than Josie's ever seen her blush before. “We’re not,” she says, her voice slightly wavering. She stares down at her feet and mutters the next part to herself, like she doesn't intend to say it at all. “I mean—we—I don’t think we are.”

Lizzie violently flings her hands in the air. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?!”

Josie stares at Hope with wide eyes. 

She would also like to know what that means.

Before Hope can answer, Alaric interrupts.  “Girls!” he shouts, fed up with their antics. “Let's focus on the monster!”

Hope and Josie avert eye contact, thoroughly scolded, but Lizzie only huffs petulantly and crosses her arms over her chest.

* * *

The plan to thwart the monster is successful. They all survive, including Josie.

The next day, they pretend nothing happened and go to class.

And after class, since it's their routine now, Hope and Josie meet at the dock.

Hope's waiting when Josie gets there, as usual. For once, she seems deep in thought—but she seems to snap out of it when Josie breaks through the woodline. 

Hope smiles, her eyes lighting up. “Hey, princess,” she says.

Josie feels herself blush, but she tries to ignore it and smiles back. “Hey,” she replies, shyly brushing a lock of hair behind her ear.

They get settled as they always do. Josie rests her head in Hope's lap and cracks open her book where she left off.

When Josie tries to focus on her book, the words swim in front of her. She's hyperaware of Hope's presence and she can't stop thinking.

Josie gets frustrated when she can't seem to make it through a single sentence. She snaps her book shut and sits up so abruptly that Hope jumps, surprised.

Josie turns to look at Hope over her shoulder, leaning on her elbows without fully sitting up. “Hope, are we a thing?” she blurts out before she can lose her nerve.

Hope stares at Josie blankly. “A thing...?” she echoes, confused.

Josie licks her lips. “Are we a romantic thing?” she clarifies awkwardly, her voice wavering a little bit.

Hope blinks. “Do you want us to be a romantic thing?” she asks, her expression unreadable.

Josie opens and closes her mouth a few times. “I mean,” she starts, not sure how to respond. She clears her throat and tries to muster up the courage to be honest. “Yeah.”

“Okay,” Hope says simply.

Josie pouts, confused. “Okay?” she repeats.

“Yeah,” Hope answers with a nod. “We’re a romantic thing, then.”

Josie stares, shocked that it was that easy. “Oh,” she blurts out after a moment. “Cool.”

Josie lays back down.

Hope relaxes, brushing her fingertips through Josie’s hair. 

It only lasts for a few seconds before Josie closes her book again and sits all the way back up.

Hope stares at Josie expectantly, less surprised this time around.

“Wait,” Josie starts, licking her lips again and glancing down at Hope's. “Does that mean that I can kiss you?”

Hope cocks her head to the side. “Do you want to?” she asks, curious and strangely innocent.

Josie swallows thickly, glancing at Hope's lips again. “Yeah,” she admits with a shrug.

Hope smiles, reaching out to tuck a lock of hair behind Josie's ear. “Okay,” she replies. “Kiss me, then.”

Josie hesitates for a moment, stunned. 

Then, she slowly leans in and brushes her lips over Hope's, her eyes fluttering closed. 

Hope cups Josie's jaw and kisses her when she senses that Josie's a little bit uncertain of herself. 

Josie huffs out a satisfied sigh, shifting closer and wrapping her arms around Hope's neck.

They continue lazily for while, until Hope breaks the kiss with an uncontrollable smile and Josie pulls back, unable to stop a smile of her own.

Their eyes flutter open and they both giggle at the looks on each other's faces. Josie pecks Hope on the lips one last time before she shifts again to lay back down, cracking her book open for the third time.

Hope threads her fingers through Josie's hair. "Lizzie is definitely going to think we were sneaking around," she murmurs, matter-of-fact. 

Josie nods, her expression neutral and resigned, but apparently not very distressed. "She'll be pissed for months," she replies.

**Author's Note:**

> No clue where this came from
> 
> Hope you like it
> 
> ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ 
> 
> Follow me on Twitter @Th3Nutcase


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